Axial face seals (or “face seals”) are used to seal two relatively rotating bodies against each other. Face seals keep dirt and other contamination from reaching sensitive parts of a machine, such as bearings, and are also used to retain fluid within a fluid-filled housing. Typically, face seals are designed to be mounted and assembled as pairs in a face-to-face relationship, with the two sealing rings (typically highly polished metal rings) facing each other and rotating relative to one another. Two-piece seals are considered to be particularly susceptible to misassembly, misalignment, wear and damage because the two sealing rings, both being made of metal, are prone to wear and overheating.
In many instances, face seals may be used with rubber-tracked vehicles having high travel speeds, which, in turn, produce high face seal temperatures due to the high circumferential face speeds. For example, the larger the seal, the larger the circumference and hence face speed, and therefore higher temperature for a given vehicle speed. Wear and overheating may be heightened in applications involving vehicles having high travel speeds. Additionally, rubber-tracked vehicles may also experience high tractive effort and track tension. High tractive effort and high pre-load track tension place a large load on the bearings of the idler wheels. As such, large, high-capacity bearings are required. In turn, larger circumference face seals are also required for such applications.
To address the above-identified issues associated with face seals, U.S. Pat. No. 8,636,286 (“the '286 patent”) discloses a face seal and bearing assembly designed to improve the reliability of rubber-track vehicle wheel assemblies. Specifically, the '286 patent discloses a seal configuration that allows for the seal diameter to be smaller than the associated bearing, thereby reducing heat produced by the face seal during operation while still limiting any tension and reaction forces applied to the bearings. While such seal configuration certainly provides improvements over other conventional face seals used for track-driven work vehicles, further improvements and/or refinements are still needed, particularly with respect to installing face seals within an associated wheel assembly.
Accordingly, an improved face seal having an installation pilot to facilitate press-fitting the seal into a wheel assembly of a work vehicle would be welcomed in the technology.